Port of Victoria ships more than 2M barrels of oil in December

In December, the port broke its previous record by shipping more than 2 million barrels of oil from its facilities. The port closed its 2013 books with a total of 17,777,232 barrels shipped.

Jennifer Stastny, Port of Victoria executive director, said the new record is huge.

"There are a lot of good things going on here at the Port of Victoria," she said. "We're really excited about our opportunities in 2014."

Construction on the new general purpose container dock is expected to be completed by the end of the year, she said, which is something the port will need in the near future.

"With the new dock, we should be able to double our shipping capacity," Stastny said.

Robert Loeb, navigation district commissioner, said the port has been planning on the container dock for several years. Now that it's in the works, he said that will help build on the future success of the port.

"Our customers are very excited about that new dock," he said.

The infrastructure provided by the port will help bring more businesses to the area, which also means more jobs for the area, he said.

"It's no secret increased activity at the Port of Victoria has a substantial economic impact on the Victoria region in terms of jobs and investment," he said.

Fowler said the growth is a direct result of the port's preparation to meet the demand in the region's growing oil and gas industry. The Port of Victoria is on more than 2,000 acres and is accessible by railway, highways, air and waterways.

This advancement is a great example of what the communities can achieve when they are prepared, Fowler said.

"We're just trying to capitalize on the opportunities that are there," Stastny said, "and to position ourselves to be able to capitalize on future opportunities to carry us well into the next decade."